Every legal form in the United States, each with its abbreviation, the kind of entity it is, liability and typical use where they are well established, and the values the Prometiam company object returns.
This guide lists the 13 legal forms the Prometiam dictionary knows for the United States: what each is called, how it is abbreviated, what kind of entity it is and how it appears in the company object. Use it to read the legal_form of a company registered in the United States, or to decode a form you meet in a contract or on an invoice. It is a general reference, not legal advice.
Coverage and limits for the United States: company records only (no officers, no registry-compliance signal); the business registers of New York, Colorado, Connecticut and Pennsylvania plus SEC filers and LEI holders from every state, so not every US company; sole proprietorships, estates and personal trusts are never served. US sources: New York Department of State, Colorado Secretary of State, Connecticut Secretary of the State, Pennsylvania Department of State (open data), SEC EDGAR, GLEIF (CC0).
| Form | Abbreviation | Kind | What to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corporation | Inc., Inc | Public limited company (joint-stock company) | A corporation is a separate legal entity formed under a state’s law: shareholders’ liability is limited to their investment, and a board of directors and officers run it under bylaws. A C corporation pays tax itself; an S corporation election is a tax status, not a separate entity type. Delaware is a common choice for venture-backed companies. |
| Limited liability company | LLC, L.L.C. | Private limited company | A limited liability company formed under a state’s law: its owners (members) are generally not personally liable for its debts, management is set in an operating agreement, and by default it is taxed as a pass-through. Some states have a professional variant (PLLC). |
| Limited partnership | LP, L.P. | Limited partnership | A limited partnership: at least one general partner with unlimited liability, and limited partners liable up to their investment. The LLLP variant also shields the general partners. |
| Limited liability partnership | LLP, L.L.P. | Limited liability partnership | A limited liability partnership: partners are shielded from some of the partnership’s liabilities; used by professional firms, and the rules vary by state. |
| Professional corporation | P.C., PC | Private limited company | A professional corporation, for licensed professions such as doctors or lawyers. |
| Nonprofit corporation | NPC | Association | A nonprofit corporation. |
| General partnership | GP, G.P. | General partnership | A general partnership: the partners are personally liable for its debts. |
Every company object carries four legal-form fields: legal_form (the standard abbreviation, null when the form is not mapped), legal_form_family (the cross-country family, so a private limited company compares across countries), local_legal_form (the register’s own value or code as stored) and local_legal_form_name (the register’s name for it, where it publishes one). Each form below shows the values the API returns for it.
curl -H "Authorization: Bearer rk_live_..." \ "https://api.prometiam.com/functions/v1/risk-api/companies/search?country=US&name=<company name>" # each result carries, for example: # "legal_form": "Inc." # "legal_form_family": "public_limited_company"
Private limited company: a company with its own legal personality whose owners are, as a rule, not personally liable for its debts and whose shares are not offered to the public.
A limited liability company formed under a state’s law: its owners (members) are generally not personally liable for its debts, management is set in an operating agreement, and by default it is taxed as a pass-through. Some states have a professional variant (PLLC).
LLC, L.L.C., PLLC, P.L.L.C.legal_form LLC, legal_form_family private_limited_company, local_legal_form LLC or PLLCA professional corporation, for licensed professions such as doctors or lawyers.
P.C., PClegal_form P.C., legal_form_family private_limited_company, local_legal_form PCPublic limited company (joint-stock company): a company with its own legal personality and share capital whose owners are, as a rule, not personally liable; the family of forms that can usually raise money from the public.
A corporation is a separate legal entity formed under a state’s law: shareholders’ liability is limited to their investment, and a board of directors and officers run it under bylaws. A C corporation pays tax itself; an S corporation election is a tax status, not a separate entity type. Delaware is a common choice for venture-backed companies.
Inc., Inc, Corp., Corp, Incorporatedlegal_form Inc., legal_form_family public_limited_company, local_legal_form CORPN.A.legal_form N.A., legal_form_family public_limited_company, local_legal_form the register’s own textlegal_form Bank or savings institution, legal_form_family public_limited_company, local_legal_form BANKLimited liability partnership: a partnership in which the members’ liability is limited.
A limited liability partnership: partners are shielded from some of the partnership’s liabilities; used by professional firms, and the rules vary by state.
LLP, L.L.P.legal_form LLP, legal_form_family limited_liability_partnership, local_legal_form LLPGeneral partnership: the owners run the business together and, as a rule, answer personally for its debts.
A general partnership: the partners are personally liable for its debts.
GP, G.P.legal_form GP, legal_form_family general_partnership, local_legal_form GPLimited partnership: at least one partner answers without limit for the debts, the others only up to what they contributed.
A limited partnership: at least one general partner with unlimited liability, and limited partners liable up to their investment. The LLLP variant also shields the general partners.
LP, L.P., LLLPlegal_form LP, legal_form_family limited_partnership, local_legal_form LP or LLLPCooperative: an organisation owned and run by its members.
Coop, Co-oplegal_form Coop, legal_form_family cooperative, local_legal_form COOPAssociation: a membership body, usually non-profit.
A nonprofit corporation.
NPClegal_form NPC, legal_form_family association, local_legal_form NPClegal_form Unincorporated association, legal_form_family association, local_legal_form ASSOCMutual: a body owned by its members, typical for insurance and guarantees.
CUlegal_form CU, legal_form_family mutual, local_legal_form CUEstate or trust: assets held for heirs, creditors or beneficiaries.
legal_form Trust, legal_form_family estate_or_trust, local_legal_form TRUSTSee the the United States company data API guide for the register behind these records and the free US company lookup to try an identifier. For the register states that go with these forms, read company status in the US. All countries: company legal forms.
Side by side: LLC vs Corporation in the US: Key Differences.
Search by name or identifier and read legal_form, legal_form_family and local_legal_form on every result, or filter a bulk list by family.
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